Honeywell Nylon Fibers Exit Puts Squeeze On Supply

When Honeywell International closes its Anderson, S.C., nylon textile manufacturing operations at
the end of August, downstream manufacturers, particularly in the warp-knitting sector, will be
hard-pressed to find adequate domestic supplies of the fully drawn, including very fine-denier,
nylon 6 yarn the Anderson plant has been producing and supplying mainly on beams for warp knitting,
according to textile industry consultant Alasdair Carmichael.

“The loss of this production will tighten up the supply availability in a market segment that
is already very tight,” said Carmichael, Spartanburg-based president – Americas, of England-based
PCI Fibres & Raw Materials.

“There are quite a few issues other than just the loss of capacity. It’s not that easy to
replace because of country-of-origin issues and because it’s on beams,” Carmichael added,
explaining that it is not very practical to import product on beams. He also said the only other
domestic production of very fine-denier nylon 6 is from one or two vertical producers, and that
most other domestic nylon production involves nylon 6,6 in higher deniers.

Morristown, N.J.-based Honeywell announced it would close the Anderson facility, which
employs 168 people, after unsuccessful attempts to sell it in keeping with its strategy, initiated
in 2005, to spin off its nylon fiber operations. According to Robert Donohoe, manager, external
communications, Specialty Materials, the closure will complete the company’s divestiture of its
global nylon fiber operations. Honeywell sold its North American carpet fiber assets to Shaw
Industries Inc., Dalton, Ga., in 2005, and recently sold its Shanghai-based nylon carpet fiber
operation to Wichita, Kan.-based Invista.